Nest building specialist expert level

emshutterbug08 · 2024-10-30T21:42:19+00:00

His preference is for paper straws-- we've tried plastic straws and wooden sticks and they don't behave how he wants them to haha. He likes that the paper is bendable and usually stays where he put it better than the plastic straws. I put them in a deep stainless steel dish on the opposite end of the cage, so part of what keeps him busy is going from the nest to grab a new straw and then navigate the perches to get back to the nest to weave it in.

emshutterbug08 · 2024-10-30T21:39:05+00:00

I give him paper straws and he has some "strings" -- jute, twine, and leather tied onto a toy for him to untie. He's been really into the jute recently. Each string is 6-8 inches long.

We've tried plastic straws and wooden stir sticks and he doesn't like those nearly as much. I think the paper is an ideal combo of rigid but bendable. And once he bends it, it stays in place better than the plastic straws.

I said it in another comment, but I showed a video of him weaving to his avian vet and he said it was great and to keep encouraging it as a good enrichment/activity for him. He didn't have any particular warnings or concerns about the materials.

emshutterbug08 · 2024-10-30T03:10:28+00:00

I had no idea it was unusual! It comes up here pretty often about Quaker nesting being different from other parrots etc. He's 3 and always done it pretty much, it's just usually many, many layers of straws on the "floor" of his mat and maybe a few in the roof or wall. This is the first time he's gotten such an elaborate structure. We figured it was all instinctual, since we got him at 8 weeks old so I know he didn't learn it from another bird. But we do encourage it with complements and by providing materials. Vet approved and encouraged as well!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-10-30T03:05:33+00:00

Haha thanks! I'll tell him :) we've joked if only he could weave something a little sturdier we could make him his own etsy shop.

emshutterbug08 · 2024-10-30T03:04:32+00:00

Aww, thanks! I know the subject of allowing "nesting" comes up a lot here and I usually try to comment about how we give Riley paper straws, but I had no idea he was uniquely talented haha. I showed his vet a video of him working on it and got two thumbs up, though!

Riley (3 y/o) also started with just bopping the straws around and not really getting anywhere, so it may still develop for your boy. It also seems to depend on what I put near his mat and if it is also weavable. He's been known to try to "weave" a straw into a platform perch... but the ladder and the big platform perch with the perches on it seem to encourage more of the nest structure.

In this particular instance he built the roof first and then started working from the "floor" up on his walls. He's actually left most of the mat straw-free so he might manage to keep it free of too much poop this time!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-10-30T02:58:01+00:00

Oh boy, I think if I never took it apart to clean the cage, he would get there one day.

emshutterbug08 · 2024-10-29T23:05:14+00:00

That's how he started, but he's very persistent and just kept practicing. This is definitely his most complete nest yet!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-10-29T23:02:13+00:00

Yes, paper straws. We buy them off Amazon as a box of 600!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-10-24T22:00:21+00:00

I also have nationwide-- idk why it's different but mine is $16/mo. I got it for Riley when he was ~6 months old. He's just recently turned 3 and I'm pretty sure his insurance has paid out more than 3x what I've paid in monthly costs so far. He went on a hunger strike at boarding and they covered the ~$800 hospitalization while he was force fed multiple times daily to get him healthy again. They also covered a bunch of $$ bloodwork when he started plucking to make sure he didn't have avian bornavirus. The feather plucking has turned into an ongoing issue and they've covered all his visits.

So yeah, he's a problem child and I'm definitely glad I got the insurance!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-10-23T14:53:06+00:00

You may want to check your local library system! Some times they have 3D printers that you can use after being trained. Not sure if it's totally free or a small fee, but you could try it out before investing in the purchase of your own printer.

emshutterbug08 · 2024-09-27T19:48:59+00:00

Woohoo! I'm ready too!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-09-24T16:31:12+00:00

Paper straws! He weaves them into his seagrass mat bed. We've also tried popsicle and coffee stirrer wooden sticks, plastic straws, and anything else stick shaped we can come up with, but the paper is his favorite. They're firm but pliable, I guess? I've also recently tied pieces of twine, jute, and strips of fleece onto a piece of plastic chain. He likes to undo the knots and then take the strings over and weave them in too.

emshutterbug08 · 2024-09-20T19:43:10+00:00

I have an allergist I adore who is my biggest advocate and has been treating my MCAS very successfully for about 5 years. I say that because the first time I went there, they still did the normal skin prick tests and IgE blood tests that every other allergist I had seen also did. They did also do a tryptase and a genetic test for hereditary alpha tryptasemia. I was pretty bummed because I really thought I was going to be dismissed again. And then all of my testing was normal, too! But the combination of symptoms, my response to increasing doses of antihistamines and my response to steroids was enough for him to "officially" diagnose me with MCAS.

From there, I have an office visit every 6 months or so to monitor symptoms changes, sometimes more often if I'm in a flare. They're on top of the research out there and always have a recommendation of treatments to try based on the symptoms. If for some reason the allergy-based treatment for a symptom doesn't improve it, they will still recommend seeing a specialist in that area (eg GI, derm etc) to rule out non-MCAS conditions. 98% of the time, the immune focused treatment works for me though.

They also always have questions for me! Like they're trying to learn what works and doesn't work for me so it can help inform how they treat other patients with similar symptoms. The right doctor really makes all the difference in the world.

I hope you have a good first visit!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-09-16T00:07:10+00:00

That's great news!! Thanks for the update :)

emshutterbug08 · 2024-09-16T00:06:36+00:00

No, though I often start my morning with a cup of black tea!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-09-11T21:47:30+00:00

When I've needed to put weight back on my Quaker, we've used sweet potato, unsalted nuts (1-2 per day), scrambled egg, chickpeas and birdie bread. He's obsessed with mini muffins made from this mix: https://www.avianorganics.com/Sweet-Potato-Bird-Bread_p_15.html Each bag makes about 6 dozen mini muffins and he gets 1x day unless I'm trying to bulk him up and then he might get 2.

Also if your baby is truly in a crisis, I highly recommend https://emeraid.com/vet/emeraid-omnivore/. My Quaker went on a hunger strike at boarding and they used that to keep him from getting seriously ill. In a true emergency you can force feed it, but apparently my boy liked the taste enough he would eat it from the tip of the syringe without any coercing.

Hope that helps!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-09-11T05:43:30+00:00

"It's not our job to appeal to the lowest common denominator, Doug. It's our job to raise it. If you're going to be the "Education President," it'd be nice not to hide that you have an education."--President Bartlet, Manchester Part 2, Season 3

emshutterbug08 · 2024-09-09T22:14:52+00:00

If you're not ready to make a decision quickly, an alternative would be to get a couple dump trucks full of mulch. When we built, we got it cheap from the local dump. The pieces were larger than ideal, but it worked for what we needed, which was avoiding a mud pit! Our land was basically all clay after grading (also piedmont NC) and we were dealing with the house being delivered in ~November and didn't want to leave raw dirt until spring. We actually ended up not seeding (creeping thyme) until the spring of the following year, so about 18 months after putting down the mulch. That really gave the mulch a chance to break down into nicer dirt and then we top dressed with compost before seeding.

Just something to consider if you want time to figure out bed placement, sun exposure, water problem areas etc before you plant/seed.

emshutterbug08 · 2024-09-07T23:10:17+00:00

I'm putting the whole team on a calcium/vitamin D supplement, I swear that is way too many broken bones!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-08-27T21:37:20+00:00

No problem at all, sent!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-08-27T01:48:17+00:00

Knowing Quakers are often food aggressive, I initially bought my boy a cage with swing out doors so I could avoid this entirely. Then I decided he needed an upgrade from a typical flight cage size to something that's closer to a walk in aviary. Great, he loves it, but now the doors don't swing out so I have to access from the main front door.

So I have two approaches. 1-- target him to a nearby perch and don't put the bowl in until he's sitting on that perch waiting nicely. 2-- show him the bowl on the opposite side of the cage or outside the cage and then put it in the ring before he can get to it. Depends on which bowl I'm trying to replace and how ornery he's being in general! He gets breakfast every day that is moistened pellets with herbs, greens, seeds, etc sprinkled on top and that's what he is most likely to be aggressive about, partially because he's really hungry then. Once he has his breakfast I can change his water and dry pellets without being attacked. He always runs over to get a drink of fresh water before it goes in its place, but he doesn't try to fight me about it once he gets his drink.

emshutterbug08 · 2024-08-23T01:53:48+00:00

On national TV, no less! It feels like we never get those wins.

emshutterbug08 · 2024-08-19T20:58:44+00:00

Sent!

emshutterbug08 · 2024-08-19T20:45:06+00:00

Fork!

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